The popularity of multiplayer online games on the Internet has exploded in recent years. Unlike conventional single player electronic games, multiplayer online games enable a player to participate in games with other players, either as an individual or as a team member. The multiplayer aspect of these games adds to the players' gaming experience by offering new gaming considerations, including strategy, teamwork, and rivalries.
In order to enable playing of a multiplayer online game, host services must be provided by either an individual or a third-party host. Host services are typically executed on a host computer or server that determines who the game participants are, and whether new players may be added to each game session.
Examples of multiplayer online games that are hosted by third-party providers can be found at many gaming Web sites, including Microsoft Corporation's Internet Game Zone, which provides a myriad of single player and multiplayer online games that are played by over a half-million users daily. In order to play most of the games on such a gaming site, it is necessary for users to download (or separately procure) a copy of the game the user wishes to play. Some of these games may typically be downloaded for free, while others must be purchased, either online, or at a retail outlet. In addition, many gaming sites offer “premium” games that can only be accessed if the user has paid a membership fee to play the games, or has agreed to pay a usage fee (e.g., an hourly, daily, or monthly fee).
In contrast to Internet gaming Web sites that are broadly accessible over the Internet using a conventional browser executing on a conventional computer, a more secure and limited access gaming environment is provided by a gaming service such as Microsoft Corporation's XBOX LIVE™, which is dedicated specifically to enabling players to connect only with dedicated XBOX™ game consoles using a broadband Internet connection, so that users of the XBOX game console can participate in multiplayer games within the XBOX LIVE gaming environment. Only those who have paid an annual fee and have registered their game console with the XBOX LIVE gaming service when signing up for the online gaming service are able to participate in such games. Although the connection between the participants' XBOX game consoles and the gaming service is over the Internet, this communication uses virtual private network (VPN) tunnels to ensure security and employs the user datagram protocol (UDP) instead of the more common transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) for the communication of data packets.
These measures provide secure communication with the gaming service by the dedicated game consoles, however, this security inherently prevents communication with the gaming service through computing devices that are more versatile and convenient to use for some functions, such as entering text. Dedicated game consoles are designed for use with game controllers that are optimized for playing games, and are not designed for use in entering text, and carrying out other functions more easily done with a computer keyboard. Also, game consoles are often not readily available in offices, libraries, and other places where access to a personal computer (PC) is commonly provided. Further, requiring secure communication through a VPN tunnel is less convenient than enabling general communication over a conventional network such as over the Internet via the World Wide Web (WWW). However, for many reasons, it is desirable to access data within the gaming service through a conventional network with a versatile computer such as a PC, to check the status of games, verify billing records, enter messages to other users, control game use by a minor child, and carry out a variety of other functions.
Of course, it is possible to modify the gaming service to allow access through insecure communication networks, e.g. using a browser program running on a PC. However, permitting less secure access would inherently subject the gaming service to attacks, excessive traffic, and additional costs associated with maintaining an open, publicly accessible gaming service. These dangers would likely degrade the service provided to game participants and require increased fees to the participants. Another alternative is to modify the game consoles to enable use of a keyboard, rendering of Web pages, and other increased functionality, so that the game console has much the same ability to access Web sites on the Internet as general purpose computing devices. However, such changes would likely increase costs of the game consoles to game participants, reduce the security of the gaming system and gaming environment, and reduce the market competitiveness of such modified game consoles.
Instead, it is desirable to minimize costs by maintaining the more dedicated functionality of the game consoles (or other devices that are dedicated to a primary function, such as playing games). It is also desirable to maintain high speed communication and the least amount of traffic with the gaming service (or other secure service), and to ensure the security of the system by continuing to require VPN communication between the dedicated game consoles and the secure gaming service. Thus, an ideal solution to this problem will permit controlled access to the secure gaming service with a conventional and convenient computing device, without jeopardizing the security of the gaming service.